When you see a mackerel sky, you know the highways won’t be dry

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English Proverb: When you see a mackerel sky, you know the highways won’t be dry

This saying is used to help predict the weather.

It means that if you see cloud patterns like in the above picture, it’s probably going to rain.

There are quite a few sayings and expressions in English related to predicting or guessing the weather.

Often, the sayings rhyme to make them easier to understand.

When you see a mackerel sky, you know the highways won’t be dry.

The Proverb means a cloud pattern resembling mackerel scales means it will soon rain.

You need to know that mackerel is サバ (saba) in Japanese.

Then, you need to recognize that the cloud pattern above looks like the scales of a mackerel.

Please note sayings differ depending on the country you are in or even the part of the country.

For example, I’m from Atlantic Canada, and since I was a child, I said when you see a mackerel sky, you know the highways won’t be dry.

But one of my friends from the States says, ‘mackerel sky, mackerel sky – never long wet, never long dry.’

The meaning is the same for both sayings, even though the words are different.

Keep looking up, everybody, and if you see a mackerel sky, bring your umbrella just in case.

This post is understandable by someone with at least a 7th-grade education (age 12).

The easier a passage is to read, the higher the score on a scale of 0 – 100.